Mexico NOM-001 Mobile Phones: Import Rules Now in Force

Mexico Ends Courier Import Exemption for Mobile Phones: NOM-001 and NOM-024 Now Mandatory at the Border

Mexico's Secretaría de Economía (SE) has removed one of the last practical routes for bringing mobile phones into the country without demonstrating conformity. An agreement amending the General Rules and Criteria for Foreign Trade, signed on 21 May 2026 and published in the Diario Oficial de la Federación (DOF) on 29 May 2026, adds smartphones and other mobile phones to the list of tariff codes that cannot use the simplified courier and parcel import procedure.

The practical effect is direct: a consignment of phones that previously moved through express courier channels on a low-value declaration must now arrive with proof of compliance against Mexican safety and commercial information standards.

What the agreement actually changes

The instrument amends rule 1.2.1 (definitions), rules 2.4.3, 2.4.6 and 2.4.11, and numerals 1 and 3 of Annex 2.4.1 the "Annex of NOMs" that maps tariff codes to mandatory Mexican Official Standards.

The Mexico NOM-001 mobile phones exemption has been withdrawn

Rule 2.4.11, fractions IX and IXBIS, previously spared importers from the certification and labelling obligations in rules 2.4.3 and 2.4.8 in two situations: goods imported by SAT-registered courier and parcel companies under a simplified customs declaration with a customs value not exceeding USD 2,500 per consignee, and non-commercial goods with a customs value not exceeding USD 1,000.

Both fractions carry a second paragraph listing tariff codes that are excluded from the exemption. The agreement adds three codes to that exclusion list:

Tariff code (TIGIE)	Description
8517.13.01	Smartphones (Teléfonos inteligentes)
8517.14.91	Other mobile phones (cellular) and those of other wireless networks
8517.18.99	Others

Phones under these codes can, in the SE's words, in no case avail themselves of the simplified regime. The low value courier channel is now closed to them regardless of declared value.

Two standards now apply at the point of entry

Numeral 1 of Annex 2.4.1 is amended so that all three codes are subject to NOM-001-SCFI-2018 (Aparatos electrónicos, Requisitos de seguridad y métodos de prueba), the electronic device safety standard published in the DOF on 17 September 2019 that replaced NOM-001-SCFI-1993. For 8517.13.01 and 8517.14.91 the standard applies without qualification. For 8517.18.99 the annotation narrows it: only smartphones, other mobile phones and devices for other wireless networks are caught.

Fraction III of numeral 3 is amended to reconfirm the same three codes against NOM-024-SCFI-2013 (Información Comercial para empaques, instructivos y garantías de los productos electrónicos, eléctricos y electrodomésticos), which governs packaging, instructions and warranty information.

The SE's stated rationale is that phones already fell within the scope of NOM-001-SCFI-2018 but were not identified in the Annex as subject to it at the border a regulatory gap that, in the ministry's assessment, exposed consumers to risk.

SINEC is retired; PLATIICA takes over

Rule 1.2.1 gains a new fraction XLVI BIS defining PLATIICA the Plataforma Tecnológica Integral de Infraestructura de la Calidad at https://platiica.economia.gob.mx/. Fraction LXXI, which defined SINEC (Sistema Integral de Normalización y Evaluación de la Conformidad), is repealed.

References to SINEC in rules 2.4.3 and 2.4.6 are replaced with PLATIICA. Accredited certification bodies operating under mutual recognition agreements will now be published on PLATIICA and SNICE; laboratory registration for NOM-222-SCFI/SAGARPA-2018 now follows the PLATIICA procedure.

This is not a forthcoming platform. PLATIICA is the digital system that Article 131 of the Ley de Infraestructura de la Calidad already obliges the SE to operate, and Article 4, fraction XVIII defines it as the integrated solution administering standardisation, conformity assessment and metrology data, procedures and services. The agreement is the point at which the foreign-trade rulebook catches up with that mandate.

Energy efficiency standards updated in the same instrument

The agreement also refreshes Annex 2.4.1 against four newer energy standards, a change that has been widely under-reported alongside the phone news:

Standard	Replaces	Scope
NOM-004-ENER-2025	NOM-004-ENER-2014	Motor-pump sets for clean water, 0.149–1.492 kW
NOM-011-ENER-2025	NOM-011-ENER-2006	Central, package and split ducted air conditioners, 5,275–19,050 W
NOM-014-ENER-2025	NOM-014-ENER-2004	Single-phase AC squirrel-cage induction motors, 0.180–2.238 kW
NOM-016-ENER-2025	NOM-016-ENER-2016	Three-phase AC squirrel-cage induction motors, 0.746–373 kW

Two consequential adjustments accompany this. Tariff code 8413.60.01 is deleted from numeral 1 of Annex 2.4.1, because submersible pumps fall outside the scope of NOM-004-ENER-2025. And codes 8501.51.02 ("Asynchronous, three-phase") and 8501.51.99 ("Others") are added under NOM-016-ENER-2025, limited to general-use motors of 0.746 kW (1 HP) or above.

What this means for manufacturers

If you ship phones into Mexico by courier, your route has closed. The most exposed parties are not the large OEMs with established certification programmes they are e-commerce sellers, refurbishers, distributors sampling new models, and any business that has been relying on the sub-USD 2,500 courier channel or the sub-USD 1,000 non-commercial channel to move handsets. Those channels no longer accept phones without a NOM certificate.

NOM-001-SCFI-2018 certification is not a paperwork step. It requires testing by a laboratory accredited in Mexico or recognised under a mutual recognition arrangement, and a certificate issued by an approved certification body. Lead times are measured in weeks, not days. If you are discovering this obligation now, you are already behind the effective date.

NOM-024-SCFI-2013 is a labelling and documentation obligation, and it is a common failure point. It governs the commercial information on the packaging, the instruction manual and the warranty terms in Spanish, with specified content. Products that pass safety testing are routinely held at the border for NOM-024 defects: a missing importer address, an English-only manual, a warranty that does not state the conditions Mexican law requires.

Check whether 8517.18.99 actually catches your product. The annotation under numeral 1 is narrower than the code itself. If your goods classify to 8517.18.99 but are not smartphones, mobile phones or devices for other wireless networks, the NOM-001 obligation in that line does not reach them. This is worth confirming with your customs broker before you certify unnecessarily.

Motor, pump and air-conditioning importers have a separate action. If you hold certificates against NOM-004-ENER-2014, NOM-011-ENER-2006, NOM-014-ENER-2004 or NOM-016-ENER-2016, the transitional provision protects you those certificates remain valid on the terms they were issued until they expire. But new certification must be against the 2025 versions, and importers of three phase motors under 8501.51.02 and 8501.51.99 are now in scope for the first time.

Update your PLATIICA references. Any internal compliance procedure, broker instruction or supplier document that points to SINEC is now pointing at a repealed definition.

Certification impact summary

Product scope	Tariff codes	Standard(s) now required	Nature of obligation	Change
Smartphones	8517.13.01	NOM-001-SCFI-2018; NOM-024-SCFI-2013	Certificate of compliance + commercial information	New at border — courier exemption removed
Other mobile / wireless-network phones	8517.14.91	NOM-001-SCFI-2018; NOM-024-SCFI-2013	Certificate of compliance + commercial information	New at border — courier exemption removed
Other phones (smartphones & mobile only)	8517.18.99	NOM-001-SCFI-2018 (annotated scope); NOM-024-SCFI-2013	Certificate of compliance + commercial information	New at border — annotated, narrower scope
Motor-pump sets	8413.60.99, 8413.70.99, 8413.81.99, 8413.82.01	NOM-004-ENER-2025	Energy efficiency certificate + labelling	Standard version updated
Submersible pumps	8413.60.01	—	—	Removed from Annex — now out of scope
Central / split ducted air conditioners	8415.82.01, 8415.82.99	NOM-011-ENER-2025	Energy efficiency certificate + labelling	Standard version updated
Single-phase induction motors	8501.40.08, 8501.40.99	NOM-014-ENER-2025	Energy efficiency certificate + marking	Standard version updated
Three-phase induction motors	8501.51.02, 8501.51.99	NOM-016-ENER-2025	Energy efficiency certificate + marking	Newly added codes
Three-phase motors (existing codes)	8501.52.04, 8501.52.99, 8501.53.04, 8501.53.05	NOM-016-ENER-2025	Energy efficiency certificate + marking	Standard version updated

Timeline and required actions

Date	Event	Required action
17 Sep 2019	NOM-001-SCFI-2018 published in the DOF	Standard already in force; phones were within its scope but not flagged at the border
21 May 2026	Agreement signed by Secretary of Economy Marcelo Ebrard	—
29 May 2026	Published in the DOF (código 5788992); SNICE bulletin issued the same day	Review classification exposure across 8517.13.01, 8517.14.91, 8517.18.99
30 May 2026	Agreement enters into force (day after publication)	Energy-standard and PLATIICA changes apply
1 Jul 2026	Deferred applicability of rule 2.4.11 and Annex 2.4.1 changes for NOM-001-SCFI-2018 and NOM-024-SCFI-2013 takes effect	Phones must clear customs with a NOM-001 certificate and NOM-024-compliant commercial information
Ongoing	Existing energy certificates (NOM-004-ENER-2014, NOM-011-ENER-2006, NOM-014-ENER-2004, NOM-016-ENER-2016)	Remain valid until their stated expiry; recertify against the 2025 versions thereafter

Immediate actions for affected manufacturers and importers:

1. Audit shipments in transit. Any phone consignment arriving after 1 July 2026 without a NOM-001 certificate is at risk of detention. This obligation is already live.

2. Confirm tariff classification with your customs broker, paying particular attention to whether 8517.18.99 goods fall inside the annotated scope.

3. Engage an approved certification body for NOM-001-SCFI-2018. Testing capacity is finite and demand from this rule change is concentrated.

4. Review Spanish-language packaging, manuals and warranty statements against NOM-024-SCFI-2013 before goods ship, not after they are held.

5. Migrate compliance workflows from SINEC to PLATIICA and verify that your certification body appears on the PLATIICA listing.

6. Separately assess motor, pump and air-conditioning lines against the four updated energy standards, and check whether 8501.51.02 or 8501.51.99 now capture products you previously imported without an energy certificate.

   
   

Outlook

The direction of travel is consistent. Mexico has spent the past two years narrowing the low-value and courier channels that allowed regulated goods to enter with minimal scrutiny, and the migration to PLATIICA gives the SE a single digital surface across standardisation, conformity assessment and metrology. Manufacturers should expect the exclusion list under rule 2.4.11 to grow rather than shrink, and should treat the courier exemption as an eroding concession rather than a durable planning assumption.